Day 1 December 1 - What can I say so far about this? I am eating kale for the first time. I am also blending spinach with oranges. Never thought I would say that!
What I did notice today when I was grocery shopping was other peoples carts. There was a lot of inside the store stuff in carts. What I mean by that is, when you shop you should always stick to the outside. The inside or isle stuff is where all the processed and sugary stuff is. The outside has your meats, dairy, veggies and bakery. Don't get me wrong, I like the chip isle. In fact, I am addicted to a good chip. This is one of the very reasons I work out. So I can eat what I want! But looking at what others put in their carts was educational. As I look at my cart I am thinking this is what I am feeding my family. I am the purchasing agent for the Wourms Rowe household. I bring in the chips. I bring in the chocolate. I bring in the processed sugary junk. So I better start bringing in a variety of vegetables.
But back to the veggies. I am not eating enough during the day. I am eating enough food but not the right kind of food. Let's talk about lunch. I do not remember to always get my lunch ready in the morning. I think that I will get home to eat... Never happens!!! I either go to Safeway or call my husband. Either are good choices but then I might not get my nutrients that I need. I need to work on being reliable to myself. I need to feed my own self. That is a crazy statement considering I just turned 44. Yup 44. This is why I need to challenge myself more. I am supposed to be responsible. Over this next 20 days it is my job to be responsible.
As I finish this off my oldest son asked me if I wanted a snack. Oh yes I do! But what kind of snack am I going to choose? I did say to him that there are sliced cucumbers in the fridge. Do you think he heard me??????
Day 2 December 2 - I did something to start off my day that I have NEVER done! I made a orange, spinach and Kale smoothy. What was priceless what watching Benjamin's face. He couldn't get over that I was going to drink what was in the cup. As I stated in my video blog... I am eating this kale thing for the first time. I have never tried it let alone drink it in the morning! I am a latte and cranberry multigrain toast with peanut butter and honey girl. I have been eating that for the last 2 years almost every morning. I am a creature of habit! I like routine. Now I am having a salad of spinach and kale in a cup with oranges. But.... It is good! Can't wait to see where this journey takes me. I am interested if a change of eating habits affects my weight. I have been the same weight since my wedding day! In fact, last summer I had on my wedding dress so I know for sure I am the same size. Please take note that my "Veggie Quest" is NOT about weight! (as we don't even own a scale and never will). It is about adding nutrients to my body and watching my intake of veggies.
Day 3- This veggie thing isn't that hard. I said on my home page that I could be a vegetarian. I do have one student, Brendin, who has decided to tackle this challenge for his 20 days... be a vegetarian. I need to ask him how it is going. Maybe I should take it up a notch? Well, I have committed to two veggie smoothies a day and I am eating veggies with every meal and snacks. I don't know how many more veggies I can put in my diet. Tonight I had a kale, V8 juice and avocado smoothie. That was interesting... Don't know if I will make that a regular occurrence. I think a cooking challenge with veggies should have happened and I might add that. One can only have so many salads in a day!!!!! I am watching my children watch me. They think I am nuts!! I did make a smoothie for Mike today and he drank it. Who knows that might stick as a part of our daily routine?
Day 4 - Ok. I am so tired today! Is it because I am lacking something in my diet... too much of something in my diet. Or maybe I just need to go to bed on time. Anyways, I have decided that I am going to be eating vegetables every time I eat. Breakfast, lunch, supper and snacks all have to have a veggie with it. If I am eating chips, as I adore chips, I also have to incorporate veggies. I have been really good at making sure I have lunch and not grabbing something on the fly. Even though my grabbing was not fast food. I very rarely eat fast food. I was OBSESSED with McDonalds when I was pregnant with Brock. I could scarf down a Big Mac and 2 cheese burgers. Yup that is right! With Ben's pregnancy... I hated McDonalds!!! I find that interesting. But back to my quest. Mike has jumped on board and is now having a veggie smoothie with me in the morning. Team work!!! That is is how my house works!
Day 6 - Ok I missed day 5 (sorry) Yoga and Benjamin's band concert kind of occupied my blogging time. But that happens. Life gets in the way. But that doesn't mean you don't stop or avoid it for days and days. Hence why I am writing today. My first eating out day with the 20 Day Challenge. But what to do? This is something that I haven't done with my challenge. HELP!!! Off to Safeway I went. But what to get? I ended up getting veggie, brown rice sushi and a bag of snap peas. The snap peas were good... the sushi on the other hand BLAH!!!! It is actually still sitting in my fridge. I am not a fan of veggie sushi! I am a fan of sushi but not the kind I bought. I guess it is live and learn... oh I have learned!
Day 7 - I switched day 6 and 7. What is positive about this journey so far. The fresh food I am eating. The colors that I have added to my diet. I am conscious about what I purchase in the grocery store (Superstore is the store of choice). I am enjoying the conversations I am having with my family. I have my friends checking in on me and wondering how it is going. I am promoting eating veggies every where I go. Yes I am a geek!!!! Let's take today at the Base rink. I didn't have lunch and Ben's game was at 1pm. Ok, what to do. I looked at the choices. The Base rink food is very good. They had salads, burgers, wraps, etc... The combination salad was $8. A burger was $5.75. Add Fries for $2.50. So what to do. I ordered the salad, told the lady about my challenge and then she convinced me that the burgers were so good. As order after order comes up to the front for people to pick up. What are they???? ALL BURGERS AND FRIES! The temptation. So what did I get? Yup burgers and fries! Does it count that the burger had lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and BACON? Bacon is a veggie right? Oh well, the rest of my day was true to the veggie quest!
Day 10 - Where did the time go? I am busy eating veggies that is where it went! What is interesting about his journey is that eating a veggie smoothie in the morning and in the evening is starting to become a norm. I make 4 a day. 2 for me and 2 for my husband. This is why it is so interesting to me. The smoothies are not great. They aren't bad either. It is like eating big salad in a cup. Benjamin just looks at me like I am CRAZY! I am eating veggies with every meal and not just 1 or 2 I am talking I am probably getting double or triple the servings that I need. What is that all about? It does show me how I was not getting enough. I can say things are "regular" like they should be. (you can read into that). But it is a part of the journey!!!!
Days 13 to 16 - University of North Dakota here we come!!! Wait! That means a whole weekend of eating out. What? Can I keep up with this challenge? Those are the thoughts I had on Dec 16. Now back from my journey I can say I was partially successful. On Friday our first stop was Walmart in Minot. There is was easy to pick up vegetables. I bought beans, tomatoes, a stir mix melody (broccoli, cauliflower, carrots), and snap peas. All was good Friday then Saturday hit!!! Eating veggies in the morning sucks! Yuck! I had to gag them down. It was not pleasant (but I did it!!!!!) What was interesting to me was the fact I was eating amounts of veggies and odd times (like sitting watching a hockey game) created a lot of discussion. By the end of the weekend some Mom's were asking if I ate my veggies and how I was doing. Being asked about journey created these types of discussions;
No I am not trying to be a vegetarian
Yes I ate vegetables before I just didn't eat enough according to the Canadian Food Guide
No I am not worried about my weight
Yes I just want to make sure I get the nutrients into my body
Yes I did eat vegetables
Yes I did eat vegetables but only with lunch and supper. Like a few cucumbers and carrots at noon and a salad at supper
I found my self being the veggie counselor. Talking about what I eat. Introducing people to different veggies that I didn't even eat before Dec 1.
What else came out of this trip is talking about overall eating habits and exercise. I participated in some really good conversations with people who were starting out with their fitness and nutrition journey. Let's face it... I love to workout and push myself physically (just ask Mr. Wourms and Mr. Young). I am not in the norm. I go to the gym for a purpose. This is a positive.
Day 16 - Where did the time go? I have worked on eating veggies over the last couple of day... Yes I said WORK! I feel for those people who are on the road. Our bus driver was a great guy... but his eating habits sucked! He kept pushing buffets. The Pizza Ranch in particular. Every time we suggested something... buffet this buffet that. Personally buffets are full of fillers. That is how they make their money. Think about it.... There is salads and veggies but what do you fill your plate up with? How come when you Google "eating healthy at a buffet" you get a wide variety of tips! Here are some tips for you when you are eating at a buffet
survey the area - make sure you check what is there before you load up
go for the greens - more color the better. Choose dark greens, lean proteins (chickpeas, kidney beans, hard cooked eggs, grilled chicken. Avoid mayonnaise or oil-based salads. Don't over eat cottage cheese.
mix it up with crunch and zest - add walnuts, sesame seeds, or sunflower seeds.
extra garnishes - adding fresh fruit is a healthy and sweet option.
final dressing - avoide a lot of sodium, sugar and saturated fats by adding dressings. Healthiest version of a dressing? virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar, pepper and only enough to coat your greens.
I am not saying don't buffet it! But watch what you eat and especially the veggies. It is so easy NOT to eat properly. But if you do that over and over and over and over and over and over.... You will be in trouble!
Day 17 - My Veggie Quest - it is interesting how the veggies and eating more has changed my view on what I intake. At first, my body didn't like it at all. How do you know? Well, think about it! But after 5 days it was back to normal. Adding healthy you body often creates a "what are you doing to me" reaction. It is used to what you feed it. It is like a car using crappy gas. It will still run but when you start putting in more efficient fuel, it starts to run better! That is like your body. Once you start adding goodness... it starts running better. Now after my weekend away and not keep up 100% with the veggie intake I have been doing, my body is again going "hello". Not a severe or as hard but all good! Keeping clean on the inside is just as good as keeping clean on the outside!!!!! You shower everyday don't you?
Now my thoughts are turning to what to do after Friday? It would be so easy just to go back to the "norm". it does take work! After I shop, I have to come home and wash all the veggies that I have just purchased. If you don't do it right away then it sits in your fridge and eventually makes its way to the garbage vs. your mouth! By the time you wash, dry, put away, get out, make, clean up, put away, get out, make, clean, put away.... It is work. Not going to lie. A lot easier to buy the bag of carrots and cucumbers and say to yourself "I am eating my veggies!!!" What you are not getting is the dark green veggies. Kale, spinach, swiss chard, parsley, lettus, broccoli, collards, turnip greens, mustard greens, lettuce, cabbage.... Some of these I have not tried but most I have. I say "I" but my husband is on board with me. He has a veggie smoothie (as we are finding this is the quickest and easiest way to get veggies down in a hurry) with me twice a day. He is asking for a smoothie on a regular basis. This did surprise me!!!
With three days left... as I stated in the beginning, I think this is a lifestyle change vs. a 20 day change. We go to the gym to work out and make sure our bodies are running like they should. How can a body run it you are not having a balance diet!
Day 20 - Wow what can I say about this journey? Did it take me time? Well, if you consider buying fresher food for my family than yes. If you consider the veggie prep work... then yes it is. But a salad spinner really helps. Netflix has taken me into the world of documentaries. I have watched now 5 documentaries on being Vegan/Vegetarian and how animals proteins affect the human body. I am now watching others and their shopping habits (maybe this isn't so good) and watching what they put into their cart. There is A LOT of processed foods going into carts. My shopping rule is to do the outside first. If you shop the outside of the grocery store you are going to get the fresh stuff. If you shop the inside isles, you will get the processed stuff. Hey I am not saying that I am going to not buy chips. I LIKE chips!!! Are they considered a vegetable?
What I did notice today when I was grocery shopping was other peoples carts. There was a lot of inside the store stuff in carts. What I mean by that is, when you shop you should always stick to the outside. The inside or isle stuff is where all the processed and sugary stuff is. The outside has your meats, dairy, veggies and bakery. Don't get me wrong, I like the chip isle. In fact, I am addicted to a good chip. This is one of the very reasons I work out. So I can eat what I want! But looking at what others put in their carts was educational. As I look at my cart I am thinking this is what I am feeding my family. I am the purchasing agent for the Wourms Rowe household. I bring in the chips. I bring in the chocolate. I bring in the processed sugary junk. So I better start bringing in a variety of vegetables.
But back to the veggies. I am not eating enough during the day. I am eating enough food but not the right kind of food. Let's talk about lunch. I do not remember to always get my lunch ready in the morning. I think that I will get home to eat... Never happens!!! I either go to Safeway or call my husband. Either are good choices but then I might not get my nutrients that I need. I need to work on being reliable to myself. I need to feed my own self. That is a crazy statement considering I just turned 44. Yup 44. This is why I need to challenge myself more. I am supposed to be responsible. Over this next 20 days it is my job to be responsible.
As I finish this off my oldest son asked me if I wanted a snack. Oh yes I do! But what kind of snack am I going to choose? I did say to him that there are sliced cucumbers in the fridge. Do you think he heard me??????
Day 2 December 2 - I did something to start off my day that I have NEVER done! I made a orange, spinach and Kale smoothy. What was priceless what watching Benjamin's face. He couldn't get over that I was going to drink what was in the cup. As I stated in my video blog... I am eating this kale thing for the first time. I have never tried it let alone drink it in the morning! I am a latte and cranberry multigrain toast with peanut butter and honey girl. I have been eating that for the last 2 years almost every morning. I am a creature of habit! I like routine. Now I am having a salad of spinach and kale in a cup with oranges. But.... It is good! Can't wait to see where this journey takes me. I am interested if a change of eating habits affects my weight. I have been the same weight since my wedding day! In fact, last summer I had on my wedding dress so I know for sure I am the same size. Please take note that my "Veggie Quest" is NOT about weight! (as we don't even own a scale and never will). It is about adding nutrients to my body and watching my intake of veggies.
Day 3- This veggie thing isn't that hard. I said on my home page that I could be a vegetarian. I do have one student, Brendin, who has decided to tackle this challenge for his 20 days... be a vegetarian. I need to ask him how it is going. Maybe I should take it up a notch? Well, I have committed to two veggie smoothies a day and I am eating veggies with every meal and snacks. I don't know how many more veggies I can put in my diet. Tonight I had a kale, V8 juice and avocado smoothie. That was interesting... Don't know if I will make that a regular occurrence. I think a cooking challenge with veggies should have happened and I might add that. One can only have so many salads in a day!!!!! I am watching my children watch me. They think I am nuts!! I did make a smoothie for Mike today and he drank it. Who knows that might stick as a part of our daily routine?
Day 4 - Ok. I am so tired today! Is it because I am lacking something in my diet... too much of something in my diet. Or maybe I just need to go to bed on time. Anyways, I have decided that I am going to be eating vegetables every time I eat. Breakfast, lunch, supper and snacks all have to have a veggie with it. If I am eating chips, as I adore chips, I also have to incorporate veggies. I have been really good at making sure I have lunch and not grabbing something on the fly. Even though my grabbing was not fast food. I very rarely eat fast food. I was OBSESSED with McDonalds when I was pregnant with Brock. I could scarf down a Big Mac and 2 cheese burgers. Yup that is right! With Ben's pregnancy... I hated McDonalds!!! I find that interesting. But back to my quest. Mike has jumped on board and is now having a veggie smoothie with me in the morning. Team work!!! That is is how my house works!
Day 6 - Ok I missed day 5 (sorry) Yoga and Benjamin's band concert kind of occupied my blogging time. But that happens. Life gets in the way. But that doesn't mean you don't stop or avoid it for days and days. Hence why I am writing today. My first eating out day with the 20 Day Challenge. But what to do? This is something that I haven't done with my challenge. HELP!!! Off to Safeway I went. But what to get? I ended up getting veggie, brown rice sushi and a bag of snap peas. The snap peas were good... the sushi on the other hand BLAH!!!! It is actually still sitting in my fridge. I am not a fan of veggie sushi! I am a fan of sushi but not the kind I bought. I guess it is live and learn... oh I have learned!
Day 7 - I switched day 6 and 7. What is positive about this journey so far. The fresh food I am eating. The colors that I have added to my diet. I am conscious about what I purchase in the grocery store (Superstore is the store of choice). I am enjoying the conversations I am having with my family. I have my friends checking in on me and wondering how it is going. I am promoting eating veggies every where I go. Yes I am a geek!!!! Let's take today at the Base rink. I didn't have lunch and Ben's game was at 1pm. Ok, what to do. I looked at the choices. The Base rink food is very good. They had salads, burgers, wraps, etc... The combination salad was $8. A burger was $5.75. Add Fries for $2.50. So what to do. I ordered the salad, told the lady about my challenge and then she convinced me that the burgers were so good. As order after order comes up to the front for people to pick up. What are they???? ALL BURGERS AND FRIES! The temptation. So what did I get? Yup burgers and fries! Does it count that the burger had lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and BACON? Bacon is a veggie right? Oh well, the rest of my day was true to the veggie quest!
Day 10 - Where did the time go? I am busy eating veggies that is where it went! What is interesting about his journey is that eating a veggie smoothie in the morning and in the evening is starting to become a norm. I make 4 a day. 2 for me and 2 for my husband. This is why it is so interesting to me. The smoothies are not great. They aren't bad either. It is like eating big salad in a cup. Benjamin just looks at me like I am CRAZY! I am eating veggies with every meal and not just 1 or 2 I am talking I am probably getting double or triple the servings that I need. What is that all about? It does show me how I was not getting enough. I can say things are "regular" like they should be. (you can read into that). But it is a part of the journey!!!!
Days 13 to 16 - University of North Dakota here we come!!! Wait! That means a whole weekend of eating out. What? Can I keep up with this challenge? Those are the thoughts I had on Dec 16. Now back from my journey I can say I was partially successful. On Friday our first stop was Walmart in Minot. There is was easy to pick up vegetables. I bought beans, tomatoes, a stir mix melody (broccoli, cauliflower, carrots), and snap peas. All was good Friday then Saturday hit!!! Eating veggies in the morning sucks! Yuck! I had to gag them down. It was not pleasant (but I did it!!!!!) What was interesting to me was the fact I was eating amounts of veggies and odd times (like sitting watching a hockey game) created a lot of discussion. By the end of the weekend some Mom's were asking if I ate my veggies and how I was doing. Being asked about journey created these types of discussions;
- No I am not trying to be a vegetarian
- Yes I ate vegetables before I just didn't eat enough according to the Canadian Food Guide
- No I am not worried about my weight
- Yes I just want to make sure I get the nutrients into my body
- Yes I did eat vegetables
- Yes I did eat vegetables but only with lunch and supper. Like a few cucumbers and carrots at noon and a salad at supper
I found my self being the veggie counselor. Talking about what I eat. Introducing people to different veggies that I didn't even eat before Dec 1.What else came out of this trip is talking about overall eating habits and exercise. I participated in some really good conversations with people who were starting out with their fitness and nutrition journey. Let's face it... I love to workout and push myself physically (just ask Mr. Wourms and Mr. Young). I am not in the norm. I go to the gym for a purpose. This is a positive.
Day 16 - Where did the time go? I have worked on eating veggies over the last couple of day... Yes I said WORK! I feel for those people who are on the road. Our bus driver was a great guy... but his eating habits sucked! He kept pushing buffets. The Pizza Ranch in particular. Every time we suggested something... buffet this buffet that. Personally buffets are full of fillers. That is how they make their money. Think about it.... There is salads and veggies but what do you fill your plate up with? How come when you Google "eating healthy at a buffet" you get a wide variety of tips! Here are some tips for you when you are eating at a buffet
I am not saying don't buffet it! But watch what you eat and especially the veggies. It is so easy NOT to eat properly. But if you do that over and over and over and over and over and over.... You will be in trouble!
Day 17 - My Veggie Quest - it is interesting how the veggies and eating more has changed my view on what I intake. At first, my body didn't like it at all. How do you know? Well, think about it! But after 5 days it was back to normal. Adding healthy you body often creates a "what are you doing to me" reaction. It is used to what you feed it. It is like a car using crappy gas. It will still run but when you start putting in more efficient fuel, it starts to run better! That is like your body. Once you start adding goodness... it starts running better. Now after my weekend away and not keep up 100% with the veggie intake I have been doing, my body is again going "hello". Not a severe or as hard but all good! Keeping clean on the inside is just as good as keeping clean on the outside!!!!! You shower everyday don't you?
Now my thoughts are turning to what to do after Friday? It would be so easy just to go back to the "norm". it does take work! After I shop, I have to come home and wash all the veggies that I have just purchased. If you don't do it right away then it sits in your fridge and eventually makes its way to the garbage vs. your mouth! By the time you wash, dry, put away, get out, make, clean up, put away, get out, make, clean, put away.... It is work. Not going to lie. A lot easier to buy the bag of carrots and cucumbers and say to yourself "I am eating my veggies!!!" What you are not getting is the dark green veggies. Kale, spinach, swiss chard, parsley, lettus, broccoli, collards, turnip greens, mustard greens, lettuce, cabbage.... Some of these I have not tried but most I have. I say "I" but my husband is on board with me. He has a veggie smoothie (as we are finding this is the quickest and easiest way to get veggies down in a hurry) with me twice a day. He is asking for a smoothie on a regular basis. This did surprise me!!!
With three days left... as I stated in the beginning, I think this is a lifestyle change vs. a 20 day change. We go to the gym to work out and make sure our bodies are running like they should. How can a body run it you are not having a balance diet!
Day 20 - Wow what can I say about this journey? Did it take me time? Well, if you consider buying fresher food for my family than yes. If you consider the veggie prep work... then yes it is. But a salad spinner really helps. Netflix has taken me into the world of documentaries. I have watched now 5 documentaries on being Vegan/Vegetarian and how animals proteins affect the human body. I am now watching others and their shopping habits (maybe this isn't so good) and watching what they put into their cart. There is A LOT of processed foods going into carts. My shopping rule is to do the outside first. If you shop the outside of the grocery store you are going to get the fresh stuff. If you shop the inside isles, you will get the processed stuff. Hey I am not saying that I am going to not buy chips. I LIKE chips!!! Are they considered a vegetable?